What should a software engineer put on a resume?

There are some steps you can take before you get started to help improve your chances of landing the first interview. First, when deciding on what skills and accomplishments to focus on, use the job description as your guide.

The goal of your resume is to demonstrate to a potential employer that you match the combination of technical experience and hard and soft skills they are looking for.

To begin, you'll want to open with a strong profile summary. This two to four sentence introduction should be located at the top of the resume just after your contact info. The profile summary should include information about the type of software engineer you are, your years of experience, and one to two top skills and achievements.

For example, " Diligent software engineer with over five years experience in commercial application development. In previous roles, slashed downtime by 25% and ensured 98% on-time project completion."

In the work experience section, you should continue highlighting your accomplishments. Create three to six bullet points of your top achievements or responsibilities. When possible, focus on achievements over responsibility and quantify those achievements.

For example, "Maintained maximum uninterrupted flow of business-critical ops. Cut downtime by 25% and costs of warranty by up to 45%."

If you're just starting out in your career, then be sure to include your internship experience in the work experience. Also, the education section is a great place to showcase some of your skills and accomplishments. Include any group projects or core courses that you have taken. You can also create a work portfolio of your projects and link to it in your resume.

Top skills to list on your resume for a software engineer:

• Computer Science

• Programming Languages

• Statistics

• System Design and Analysis

• Conceptual, Logical, or Physical Data Modeling

• Process Management

• Advanced Physics

• Structural Analysis

• Nanotechnology

• Communication